Young Adults
Before George
by Deborah Robertson (Huia)
A powerful and moving story about identity, set immediately after the Tangiwai rail disaster. South Africa-born George, previously known as Marnya, reconstructs her life after surviving the train derailment in which 151 died, including, it seems, her mother and sister.
Borderland
by Graham Akhurst (UWA Publishing)
Rite-of-passage stories don’t come much more authentic than this first novel from an Aboriginal writer and lecturer. City-born indigenous teens Jono and Jenny head into the Queensland desert for their first gig – a doco promo for a mining company which might be encroaching on sacred land.
Different for Boys
by Patrick Ness & Tea Bendix (Walker)
Ness’s brilliant novella matched with pared-back pencil and collage spreads from Danish illustrator Bendix perfectly support the problematic masculinity playing out in a class of college boys “too young to read about the stuff we actually do”.
Glimpse
by Jane Higgins (Text)
For Christchurch teen Jonah, five years out from the first quakes, survival is a constant struggle: finding food, dodging document-checking border-control agents, and avoiding buildings that should have been demolished long ago. An audacious concept, grounded in reality.
I Kick and I Fly
by Ruchira Gupta (Rock the Boat)
This novel, based on the work of Emmy-winning documentarian Gupta, founder of rescue NGO Apne Aap, is founded in fact – girls groomed for prostitution can fight back through martial arts.
I Loved You in Another Life
by David Arnold (Hot Key)
A speculative love story expanding on the idea of a romance that plays out again and again. A bit like Alan Garner’s The Owl Service, where the myth is re-enacted, or Dana Schwartz’s Immortality and Anatomy.
The Impossible Story of Hannah Kemp
by Leonie Agnew (Walker)
This hard-edged, likeable protagonist pieces together her life, derailed after an accident, through books encountered in a mysterious mobile library – here today, gone tomorrow, but never predictable.
Lies We Sing to the Sea
by Sarah Underwood (Farshore)
She should have died, but Leto, one of 12 maidens sacrificed to save her Ithacan village, wakes on a distant shore and falls in love with the green-eyed Melantho. Combines myth, magic, romance and destiny, and is already being adapted for screen.
The Lorikeet Tree
by Paul Jennings (A&U)
A reforested Australian property, a dying solo dad, 15-year-old twins on opposite sides of the conservation fence … all serious stuff, tackling some big issues. But the Jennings of Unreal! et al still offers quirkiness for his loyal readers, especially the treehouse Alex builds to hide his smuggled feral kitten.
Picasso and the Greatest Show on Earth
by Anna Fienberg (A&U)
The redemptive power of art is celebrated in this heart-warming story of two misfits coming to terms with their pasts and each other’s present.
The Sparrow
by Tessa Duder (Puffin)
The sometimes harrowing story of Harry, another “skinny boy at everyone’s beck and call”, fresh into 1840s Auckland from Tasmania, living below the radar, swapping skirts for breeches to stay incognito in the chaotic encampments and gaining insight into the groups that made up the early capital.
Warrior Girl Unearthed
by Angeline Boulley (Rock the Boat)
A rapidly written successor to Boulley’s phenomenal debut, Firekeeper’s Daughter, features Daunis’s niece Perry Firekeeper-Birch. It buzzes like a hornets’ nest as rebel intern Perry antagonises one mentor after another to repatriate artefacts and remains held in university vaults.
Junior Fiction
Below
by David Hill (Puffin)
The writer faced his own claustrophobia in this award-winning novel about the partial collapse of a tunnel under construction, presenting the case for each side through the eyes of Liam, whose dad is the project engineer, and his activist classmate, Imogen.
Caged
by Susan Brocker (Scholastic)
Everything rings true in this page-turning tale set in suburban Auckland. Sam, a young teen on the run when an alarm goes off in the vape shop she’s robbing, jumps a wall to avoid police and discovers a yard full of caged puppies. Poverty, homelessness, elder abuse, drug addiction are all here.
Dogs of the Deadlands
by Anthony McGowan & Keith Robinson (Rock the Boat)
Call of the Wild meets Watership Down meets War and Peace. Ukraine boasts some of the highest biodiversity in the Northern Hemisphere, and on the fringes of abandoned villages, dogs descended from those left behind fight for survival.
Foxlight
by Katya Balen (Bloomsbury)
Two sisters in a foundlings’ home on the edge of a slowly rewilding wilderness sustain each other with their origin story and set out to find their missing mother. Achingly beautiful writing, delivering a paean to the redemptive power of nature and the true meaning of home.
The Lost Library
by Rebecca Stead & Wendy Mass (Text)
From the team that brought us Bob, this mystery surrounding a small town’s burned-down library is told from the viewpoints of a cat, two boys and a ghost librarian. Absolutely charming, with just enough mystery to keep young minds guessing.
Madame Badobedah
by Sophie Dahl & Lauren O’Hara (Walker)
Mabel, whose parents manage the Mermaid Hotel, and her friend Madame B go mudlarking, dive into dressing table drawers and magic their way into the Natural History Museum. This is the second of Dahl’s extended picture books featuring the unlikely friendship between a child and an “absolutely prehistoric” resident, gloriously captured in vibrant illustrations.
The Puppets of Spelhorst
by Kate DiCamillo & Julie Morstad (Walker)
Even the endpapers are coolly classy in this first in a series of illustrated fairy tales from double Newbery-winner Kate DiCamillo and Canadian artist Julie Morstad, about a group of puppets who find themselves together in a sea captain’s trunk. While each has its own dream, only together can they find a future.
The Skull
by Jon Klassen (Candlewick Press)
A girl wanders into a house no one has been in for a very long time and befriends the resident skull. This Tyrolean folk tale, found in a library in Alaska, morphed in the author’s brain into this splendid little Gothic story about facing your fears.
Squire & Knight
by Scott Chantler (Roaring Books Press)
My 10-year-old grandson likes the way this graphic novel echoes the versions of Sherlock Holmes in which Watson and Enola are the real geniuses while Holmes takes all the credit. In his Fun Extra Stuff appendix, the award-winning author also credits The Sword in the Stone as inspiration.
Sunshine on Vinegar Street
by Karen Comer (A&U)
Not all families are created equal, but this story of one IVF-conceived child puts things in perspective without losing sight of the real story. The discomfort of moving to Melbourne is moderated by Freya’s love of basketball, and the guiding light of the heritage-listed Vinegar Girl outside her window.
Three Tasks for a Dragon
by Eoin Colfer & PJ Lynch (Walker)
Studious Prince Lir is not fazed by the thought of a dragon to rescue a maiden. But servant girl Cethlenn is a contented captive. And the grumpy dragon has not flown or scorched anything for years. Traditional gender roles are challenged in this classic in the making.
Two Sparrow-hawks in a Lonely Sky
by Rebecca Lim (A&U)
From the author of the unforgettable Tiger Daughter comes her “relatively gentle, fictionalised account” of a rural community during China’s Great Leap Forward, when millions died. The story of two siblings in search of their father in Australia shows the essential kindness of strangers.
The Way of Dog
by Zana Fraillon (UQP)
Another country, another puppy farm. Fraillon has previously set a story in an Australian detention camp. Once you get used to the cadence, this dog’s-eye version is an endearing read.
Picture books
Always Never Always
by Meg McKinlay & Leila Rudge (Walker)
Words of wisdom and wacky interpretations in this bucket list from a time-honoured Aussie duo include “Never follow all the rules, for some are surely made by fools” and “Always know your way back home no matter where or how you roam”.
At the Bach
by Joy Cowley & Hilary Jean Tapper (Gecko)
A charming combo that could become a classic for yet another generation of Cowley fans. Her timeless rhyme is paired with illustrations from a Kiwi art therapist who co-won Australia’s ABIA awards for best picture book. “Good day, good sea, good sand, good night.”
Beatrice Likes the Dark
by April Genevieve Tucholke & Khoa Le (Algonquin Young Readers)
Two different sisters share a bed – but dream different dreams. Beatrice loves black clothes, cats, spiders. Roo loves the light – sunshine, loud noises, brightly coloured objects. Glorious artwork from a talented Vietnamese illustrator accompanies this Savannah, Georgia, writer’s story.
Caring for your Lion
by Tammi Sauer & Troy Cummings (NewSouth)
A 14-step guide to looking after the purrrr-fect pet. “We know you ordered a kitten but we ran out of those …” Comes complete with a feather, a Potty Pack and bedtime routine instructions.
Coney
by David Minty & Greg Parker (Minty Books)
Oh the places you’ll go! Stunned after falling from a truck, a cone with amnesia tries to work out where home is. Hilarious and timely. But how do those cones multiply?
Count the Stars
by Raewyn Caisley & Gabriel Evans (Walker)
Ninety-nine per cent of the time Maddie is really happy. Maths rules for this child, who prefers the measuring part of cupcake making, while her friends are only interested in decorating them. The book embraces all the ways mathematics matter in everyday life.
Grandpa and the Kingfisher
by Anna Wilson & Sarah Massini (Nosy Crow)
A child visiting the riverbank with his grandfather and his puppy observes the life cycle of the kingfishers as they mate, nest and hatch their chicks. Time passes, the birds fly off, puppy grows up and Grandpa becomes increasingly stooped.
Hope is the Thing
by Johanna Bell & Erica Wagner (A&U)
After the devastating bushfires of 2019, the authors set out to create a book that would inspire children to see that there is still beauty and hope in the world. Australian birds, from the kookaburra to the handsome but much-maligned ibis, come to life with a gently rhyming text.
Lizzy and the Cloud
by The Fan Brothers (Frances Lincoln)
Lizzy’s pet cloud Milo comes with instructions, including warnings of downpours and thunderstorms. Subtle details include the rainbow that shines in Lizzy’s room when Milo waters her orchids and ferns, and the snowflakes falling gently on her Janet Frame-like head of hair.
LOOK
by Gavin Bishop (Gecko)
A robust accordion board book, with 24 images in the style of Mihi, Koro and E Hoa – every race and creed on one side, objects such as doll, keys, truck on the other. The perfect new baby gift.
Look! said the little girl
by Tania Norfolk & Aleksandra Szmidt (Scholastic)
A girl and grandfather swap impressions on a summer’s walk: a ladybird is a turtle in fancy dress, a butterfly the softest sound in the world, cicadas are popcorn popping, and strawberries a taste for sharing.
Lost
by Mariajo Ilustrajo, Frances Lincoln (Quarto)
Nobody notices the wintry white stranger, except the girl who invites Bear home. The food is strange and hot, the bathtub “sea” very small, but a picture book suggests a solution for the misplaced mammal. The tragic reality of bears stranded on ice is there to be found.
Lucy and the Dark
by Melina Szymanik & Vasanti Unka (Puffin)
Nobody talks to Dark – everyone is too afraid. But the night her bedside light goes out, Lucy makes friends with the Dark and discovers there are things we need it for.
Lucky Me
by Lawrence Schimel & Juan Camilo Mayorga (Oratia)
Bruno’s brother Mateo has a dog who can read in the dark too. So although he loves visiting friend Sanjay’s cluttered house, Bruno doesn’t envy him having no siblings. Whimsical illustrations by Colombian Mayorga for Spanish American author Schimel’s insightful text, with braille info at its end.
The Shade Tree
by Suzy Lee (Greystone Kids)
Suzy Lee uses simple text in this contemporary fable of a traveller looking for shade, who takes on the rich owner of a large tree – and secures unlimited shade for the whole village.
There was an odd farmer who swallowed a fly
by Peter Millett & Paul Beavis (Picture Puffin)
This Kiwi variation on the rhyme incorporates a whole lotta reo in its holey pages. The text pairs sweater and wētā, fly and kai, and the homely setting accommodates details that might have got lost down on the farm.
Nonfiction
Before Colors
by Annette Bay Pimentel & Madison Safer (Abrams)
An encyclopedia of colour, with everything from the physics of light and how the eye perceives colour to cultural variations, historical snippets and colourful characters, this large-format picture book is simply laid out and stunningly accessible.
Critters of Aotearoa
by Nicola Toki & Lily Duval (Puffin)
Slimy, scaly, occasionally smelly and many of them endangered. These range from Archey’s frog to Smeagol the gravel maggot and dog vomit slime mould – an absolute hit with the 10-year-old. Toki’s enthusiasm for her subject translates to the page with brio.
Ghibliotheque
by Michael Leader & Jake Cunningham (Welbeck)
This first “book of the podcast” I’ve come across – an “unofficial guide to the movies of Studio Ghibli” – encompasses everything you need to know about Japanese anime.
Mangō: Sharks and Rays of Aotearoa
by Ned Barraud (Te Papa Press)
What make sharks and rays special is explored, along with myths, their use as kai, and their place in taonga. A four-page foldout shows how these predators have evolved over 400 million years.
The Observologist
by Giselle Clarkson (Gecko)
This “handbook for mounting very small scientific expeditions” arrived just as one of our family discovered a Gisborne cockroach in their home, so the chance to do a little research was welcomed. More than 100 critters are celebrated in Clarkson’s all-encompassing first sole-charge book.
PATU: The New Zealand Wars
by Gavin Bishop (Puffin)
A monumental work encompassing the movements of people and troops in the early years of colonial settlement, honouring all those who played a part, including Bishop’s Scottish grandfather.
Those Magnificent Voyagers of the Pacific
by Rick Fisher & Andrew Crowe (Bateman)
Polynesia’s age of exploration preceded Europe’s, ending with settlement in Rapa Nui and Aotearoa. Vast in scope, this overview sets advances in Pacific maritime exploration against what was happening elsewhere.
UltraWild: An Audacious Plan to Rewild Every City on Earth
by Steve Mushin (A &U)
There aren’t enough superlatives to describe this project from a Wellington industrial designer and young dad. His attempt to “push creative thinking to the limit of ridiculousness” made prising this from the grip of our 10-year-old mokopuna exceedingly difficult.
Wot Knot You Got? Mophead’s Guide to Life
by Selina Tusitala Marsh (AUP)
The Pasifika poet and former laureate’s third kids’ book is loaded with good advice masquerading as casual asides.
Win 5 of the best kids’ books of 2023
To win, email your name and address to listenergiveaways@aremedia.co.nz with ‘50 Best Kids’ Books’ in the subject line by noon on December 8.
